Pubdate: Thu, 17 May 2001 Source: Washington Times (DC) Copyright: 2001 News World Communications, Inc. Contact: http://www.washtimes.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/492 Author: Malcolm Menged Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v01/n863/a01.html UNJUST DRUG LAWS SEND WRONG MESSAGE TO KIDS Opponents of medical marijuana often argue that "it would be sending the wrong message to the children." I believe, however, that by keeping marijuana a Schedule 1 controlled substance, the federal government is sending the wrong message to my 14-year-old daughter ("Medical pot use defense rejected," May 15). Our daughter's Sunday school teacher, a close family friend, contracted HIV through a blood transfusion in 1982. It was diagnosed more than a decade later, and AIDS eventually caught up with her. The side effects of the medications she took forced her to stop teaching. She couldn't eat and was being fed through a tube. She wasted away and looked like a skeleton. After visiting her, my daughter had nightmares. In January 1997, California's Compassionate Use Act, Proposition 215, went into effect, and we encouraged our friend to try cannabis, because she clearly qualified to use it. As a Sunday school teacher, she thought it would send the wrong message to her students. We finally persuaded her to try it and keep it private. Within weeks, she was eating voraciously. She was out and about, enjoying herself. She returned to the classroom. Our young daughter saw the transformation. This unique medicine gave our friend two more years of life. In May 1999, our friend died from a ruptured pancreas, a result of the highly toxic AIDS medications she took. My daughter fully understands that Congress has made possession of marijuana a federal crime. I recently asked her whether the mixed messages confused her and how she could reconcile the government's stance with her own experience. "No, I'm not confused," she said. "They're just stupid." I want the next generation to be able to respect our government. Unfortunately, my daughter recognizes that it stubbornly refuses to acknowledge the medical benefits of marijuana, and she can see through the disinformation campaign used to support that position. That sends her the wrong message. Malcolm Menged, Palo Alto, Calif. - --- MAP posted-by: Jo-D